Thursday, 21 January 2016

On 21st January 2016, a Saudi led coalition airstrike hit the village of Dhahian and then when rescuers arrived at the scene they struck again. Up to 26 people were killed, including an MSF ambulance driver and civilian rescuers and as many as 48 more were injured.

WARNING: the media below is graphic and distressing.
It is placed here as evidence as war crimes to call for an independent
investigation and to call on the international community to respect the
Arms Treaty by stopping the supply of weapons to Saudi Arabic as they
are clearly targeting civilians.

In the above video, just after the second airstrike, a father can be heard shouting "Waladi, waladi!" - "My son, my son!"

In the above video, a little boy crys in the hospital after being injured in the airstrike, asking "Am I going to die or not?"

Tweets from MSF as the news was initially breaking:

BREAKING #Yemen: Airstrikes in three villages in Saada, 5 dead and 35 wounded. An ambulance driver from MSF hospital killed.

At
around 16h local time yesterday afternoon, 21 January, the ambulance
service of the MSF-supported Al Gomhoury Hospital in Saada governorate,
Yemen, was hit by an airstrike, killing one Ministry of Health (MOH)
staff member.

The incident took place in Dhayan, about 20 kilometres from the city
of Saada and not far from the MSF-supported Shiara hospital, which was hit with a projectile on 10 January.

The ambulance was hit as it arrived at the site of an earlier
bombing. When people gathered to assist the victims, the same site was
hit again. The driver and the ambulance were then hit in a third strike.

Two other local towns, Baqim and Al Jawf, were also hit last night in
airstrikes. The total number of wounded and killed is still uncertain.
MSF has received 40 casualties, six of whom have sadly died.

Ministry of Health and MSF teams are working at full capacity in the Al Gomhoury hospital.“This latest loss of a colleague is devastating, and it demonstrates
the ruthlessness with which healthcare is coming under attack in Yemen.
People there are being subjected to this kind of violence on a daily
basis. No one, not even healthcare workers, are being spared,” says
Teresa Sancristoval, Emergency Coordinator at MSF.

17 year old cameraman Hashim al-Homran in the photo below was one of those who died.

This report was published on The Intercept:

THE AMBULANCE, a white, ramshackle Land Cruiser, rattled along the bumpy road in Saada City, in the far north of Yemen, on its way to answer an emergency call. When the driver, 35-year-old Abdulmalik Amer, arrived at the scene in the Dhayan district, 12 miles from the city, he found a collapsed house with four inhabitants trapped inside — victims of a Saudi airstrike.

For Amer, the father of two young children, January 21 was a typical day of work as an ambulance driver. It was also his last.

Abdulmalik Amer, the MSF ambulance driver who was killed.

Amer and a colleague, with the help of local residents, retrieved the four injured people from under the rubble and were about to drive to the Jumhuriya Hospital, which is supported by Médecins Sans Frontières, or MSF, when another airstrike hit.

The ambulance was ripped to shreds, killing everyone on board, as well as those who had congregated to help. Women and children nearby were seen stumbling away.

When civilians gathered to help the injured, another airstrike came down. At least 26 people were killed and 48 injured in the series of strikes, which was caught on camera.

If you have any further information about this incident, such as personal testimony, videos or links, please submit them via this form. All comments will be moderated before being put live and will be kept private if requested. If you prefer you can email additional information to jamilahanan1@gmail.com